Movie Breakdown: The Water Diviner

People are doing traditional-style reviews all over the web, so we decided to try something different.  In each “breakdown” we’ll take a look at what a film’s marketing led us to believe, how the movie actually played, and then what we learned from it all.  Read on!

The Impression:

Russell Crowe makes his directorial debut with a film about a man searching for his dead (or possibly alive) sons.

The Reality:

Remember that scene in The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers where Aragorn, in an attempt to locate Merry and Pippin, crawls around on the ground and is able to visually recreate exactly what happened before the duo disappeared into Fangorn Forest?  Well, Russell Crowe does some of that in The Water Diviner, and it’s sort of laughable.  The film also features a wonderfully cheesy mix of gentle piano music, slow motion and soft transitions throughout every single one of its many dramatic moments, and those too are often chuckle-worthy.  In other words, Crowe’s directorial debut is a heavy handed film that is difficult to fully take seriously.  However, I didn’t hate it.  Despite the movie being too glossy and bland, Crowe does do a nice job of delivering a heartfelt story that moves well and doesn’t drag.  He also turns in a good performance as Joshua, a man who has lost everything and is desperately seeking closure.

If you’re a big fan of Crowe or you would just like to see something wholesome, you could do worse than The Water Diviner.

The Lesson:

Keep at it, Crowe.